, superstorm sandy. it was the largest atlantic hurricane on record, claiming more than 100 lives and the second costliest. the cleanup in my home state of rhode island and across the east coast, i nomos agonizingly in new york and new jersey, is still under way. this week in the senate, we're working to approve a $60 billion aid package which will help restore that damage. let me step aside of my climate remarks and just speak for one minute to that, because as we consider the supplemental appropriations bill, long-term mitigation must be part of this discussion. we shouldn't replace and rebuild what was damaged just as it was. we need to replace and rebuild smarter. sandy is a preview of what is to come. infrastructure that failed or flooded should be replaced to higher standards. at-risk roads, waste water treatment plants and other utilities need to be relocated to safer places. if disaster strikes, as it has, and we don't plan ahead, as we're being urged not to, we will squander federal dollars. a 2